Fascinating food in New York and occasionally farther afield

The Joseph Fallert Brewing Co.

This German-style brewery operated in Brooklyn from 1878 until 1920, the first year of Prohibition. Perhaps its heartiest product was Fallert's alt-Bayerisch (old Bavarian) beer, described in an 1897 advertisement (at center bottom) as "a dark beer especially brewed and bottled for family use where a strengthening and healthy beverage is necessary. It's a food." That same vigor is suggested by the classic dress, and many strong vertical elements, in a calendar for that year, which also offers a contemporary view of the facilities from a wooded, impossibly elevated vantage.

The Joseph Fallert Brewing Co.Surviving structures, 52-66 Meserole St. (at Lorimer St., brewery building, to the left of the first photo) and 346 Lorimer St. (offices, to the right), Brooklyn"Telephone 900, Williamsburgh."